Morning journal and courier., 1887-07-26
Big and Eccentric Bets Made by Wealthy Men for Fun and Money

Big and Eccentric Bets Made by Wealthy Men for Fun and Money. From Chambers Journal
 So far as we can go back in the worlds history we find the rage for making wagers prevalent. The Romans had a great taste for making wagers and bets, and they had 8 conventional form of ratifying these con- tracts, which consisted in taking from the finger the ring which the higher classes inva- riably wore and giving it into the keeping of some taird party.
 wager was made early in the last centu- ry by banker named Bulliot. He WAS 8 firm believer in the superstition that if rain fell on St. Swithin's day Duly 15) it will also fall more or less for forty days after. St. Swithin's day in the year 1725 was very | wet, and so Bulliot offered to bet anyone | who chose to put down his money that the ! next forty days would be rainy. So many persons showed desire to take up this wa ger that it's terms were reduced to writing as l follows: '1f, dating from St. Swithin's day, ! it rains more or little during forty days sue l cessively, Bulliot will be considered to have | gained; but if it ceases to rain for only one | day during that time Bulliot has lost" On | these terms Bulliot bet against all who presented themselves. He was so confident | of success that he placed money against arti | cles of value of every description. People | brought gold headed canes, snuff boxes, jew 1 els, even clothes; and BuIliot wagered a much money against them as he considered | they were worth. When his stock of casl | came to an end he issued notes and bills O. l exchange to such an extent that it was sait \ he had paper money out to the amount O I one hundred thousand crowns.
 All this naturally excited a great deal O | public curiosity. and the rash man found | himself quite fashionable for the time being l Verses were made in his honor, a play wa produced which had him for the hero in ! word he attracted much attention a ! though he were a monarch or famous states | man. But, unfortunately for Bulliot, St ! Swithin was not true to his character. Fol ! the first twenty-one days of the stipulated | time more or less rain fell. The twenty sec
 ond day, however, was bright and cloudless and night came on without there being thu
 slightest sign of rain. Bulliot was ruined
 and ruined so completely that he was unabl
 to meet the notes and bills that bore hi
 name. The holders of these tried to enforc ! payment, but the ancient law did not recog
 nize debts of this kind any more than doe ! the law of more modern days. They wer
 non-suited and their debts declared irrecoy
 erable.
 A foreign prince staying in Paris made | bet with member of the Imperial club tha l he (the prince) would, in the course of tn ! next two hours, be arrested by the polio \ without committing any offence or provokin \ the authorities in any fashion. The way h. ! won his wager was by dressing himself in \ tattered old blouse, a pair of moldy ol \ boots full of holes and a disreputable bul lesque of hat. Thus attired he walked u to one of the most aristocratic cafes in Pari
 and, seating himself at table, called for cup of chocolate. The waiter, as was onl 1! | natural, did not care about serving so susp I cious looking a customer before he was as sured that the payment would be forthcon ing, so he told the prince he must pay in ae ; \ vance.
 Upon this his highness pulled bundle (
 bank notes out of his pocket, and pickin
 out one of considerable value, told him t
 take the price of the coffee out of it an
 bring back the change The man immed \ ately went in search of the proprietor of tn | cafe, who, when he heard the facts of tn ! case, ordered the coffee to be served, and g
 the same time sent to the nearest police sta of course arrested and taken before com I missary of police. He announced his ran ' and told his reasons for assuming such a unprincely costume. The authorities wer | obdurate at first, but they finally consente to send the prince under escort to the Impt ! rial club, where the gentlemen with whol
 the bet had been made proved his identit
 and paid his highness the money.
 A wager was made in 1906 in the Castl | yard, York, between Thomas Hodgson an
 Samuel Whitehead as to who should sue
 eeed in assuming the most original charat ! aeter. Umpires were selected, whose duty ! was to decide upon the comparative absurd ty of the costumes in which the two men az peared. On the appointed day Hodgso ! came before the umpires decorated with ban ! notes of various value on his coat and wais
 coat, a TOW of five guinea notes and lon ! netted purse of gold round his hat, while | piece of paper bearing the words 'Joh | Bull'' was attached to his back.
 Whitehead was dressed like 8 woman 0 ! one side, one-half of his face was painted
 and he wore a silk stocking and slipper o
 one leg. The other half of his face wa \ blacked to resemble that of negro; on th
 corresponding side of his body he wore | gaudy, long-tailed linen coat, and his le, ! was cased in half pair of leather breecf I es, with a boot and spur. One would fan cy that Whitehead must have presented b far the most singular appearance. Tn
 umpires thought differently, however, an
 awarded the stakes to Hodgson.
 ! A notorious gambler of the last centur
 finally ruined himself by very extraord
 nary bet. He had been playing with LOT
 Lorne. Their stakes had been very hig
 and luck had gone steadily against him | Exasperated at his losses he jumped u | from the card table, and seiZing a larg
 punch bowl, said: ''For once I'll have
 bet where I have chance of winning
 Odd or even for fifteen thousand guineas!
 "Odd." replied the peer calmly. The bow
 was dashed against the wall, and on tn
 odd one. The rash gambler paid up hi
 fifteen thousand guineas, but if traditio
 be correct, it was only by selling the las \ of his estates that he was enabled to do SC